Consumer spending during the Easter period showed encouraging signs, particularly in essential goods, according to the head of the small shopkeepers’ association (Povek) Stefanos Koursaris and supermarkets’ association director Andreas Hadjiadamou.

Speaking to CNA, Koursaris noted that, as is typical during the Easter holidays, demand for essential items rose significantly, despite price increases in some categories. “The market performed reasonably well, considering that people allocated much of their budget to the festive table,” he said, highlighting that a large portion of household spending focused on necessities.

He pointed out, however, that higher prices for basic goods likely impacted spending in other areas, such as clothing and footwear, which did not see the usual festive boost. “Consumer behaviour has changed,” he said. “Although there was some movement, it wasn’t the strong increase we typically expect during Easter.”

Koursaris also suggested that the early payment of April pensions, on the 12th of the month, may have supported spending to some degree. “It gave people a bit of a push, but many were cautious with their purchases, knowing they’d need to stretch that money for another month and a half,” he explained.

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“We didn’t see frivolous spending – people shopped carefully.”

Despite the cautious spending, Koursaris praised consumers’ preference for supporting small businesses. “Even with higher meat prices, people chose to shop at small butcheries rather than go for cheaper options at large supermarkets,” he said. “There’s an understanding that small, family-run businesses need to survive. People value the service and show trust in local shopkeepers, which is a positive sign.”

For his part, Hadjiadamou expressed complete satisfaction with supermarket activity over Easter.

“Supermarkets traditionally take centre stage during this period,” he said. “After all the effort we put in each festive season to offer the best possible service, we saw strong demand, especially in the last couple of days.”

He said supermarkets maintained stable pricing despite market pressures and estimated that consumer activity was on par with last Easter. “Everything ran smoothly without any issues and the official food safety inspections were carried out without any complications,” he added.

On a related note, when asked about the implementation of the upcoming e-kalathi price comparison platform, Hadjiadamou said the latest update suggests it will launch shortly after the Easter holidays.